Chinese New Year Cookies - Almond Crisps/Almond Brittle 杏仁片脆饼

I always wonder why this is only sold during Chinese New Year. Surely the ingredients used here are available all year long. There is another type of almond crisp that uses florentine powder. Somehow I still prefer this simple recipe. It is more aromatic due to the egg whites used. Besides, florentine powder is not sellling cheap here. At RM22.50 per half kg pack, it sure makes simple egg white more than appealing!

The first time I tried out this almond brittle recipe, it turned out too thick. It was not crispy and brittle but chewy. But I have since corrected the mistake. Nowadays, I get perfectly crisp and brittle almond slice every time. If you want to make a good piece of almond brittle, spread your batter as thinly as possible.

Heat control is another important factor. The sides and corners will normally get browned rather easily. There are two ways to go about this: 1. To break the corners once it is browned and let the rest continue to bake; or 2. To cover the sides with aluminium foil. I did the former. Sometimes when I am not happy with the browning, I would just throw the brittle back for a minute or two to get even browning.

Making this almond brittle requires a lot of tender loving care. When the brittle starts browning, watch it like a hawk as it burns quite easily. Leave your whatsapping or wechatting alone for a while. I have added the measurements in grams for those who would prefer more accurate measurements. Here is the recipe. Enjoy!

UPDATE 16/1/2016: I changed from 3 egg whites to 2 egg whites. It enables to batter to crisp up faster. You would have slightly less egg aroma than using 3 egg whites. 

Almond Brittle 杏仁片脆饼

Adapted from Hipfood

Makes two sheets of crisps

Ingredient

2 large egg whites (75 g) (original recipe uses 3 whites)
1/4 cup plain flour (30 g)
1/4 cup sugar (original recipe uses 1/3) (55 g)
3 tbsp butter/margerine (melted) (original uses 2 tbsp oil) (30 g)
1 cup almond slice (original recipe requires 1 1/2 cup) (95 g)

Cooking Instruction

1. Preheat oven to 170C.

2. Mix egg white and sugar until dissolve. Add butter and flour. Mix until there are no lumps.

3. Add almond slice in and mix until well coated.

4. Spread mixture as thinly and as evenly as possible on the tray. If the mixture is too thick, you would have a hard time making it crispy.

5. Bake for 15-20  mins, keeping a close eye on the sides and corners. Corners and sides get browned faster. I made lines on the spread after it was in the oven for 5 mins so that it would be easier for me to break later. I just swap the outer pieces with the inner pieces to get even browning.

6. You would notice some pieces in the middle are still soft after 20 minutes. Remove the crispy ones and bake the underdone ones for 2 minutes. When time is up, just leave it and let the crisps cool in the oven. The residue heat would crisp up the remaining pieces. Let almond crisps cool completely before storing in air tight jars.